Toilet seat cover with foldable side flaps

ABSTRACT

A toilet seat cover is provided. The toilet seat cover is a substantially flat paper material. The flat paper material includes a body having a perimeter with a front, a rear, a first side, and a second side. The body may include an inner rim forming an opening within the perimeter and aligning with an opening of a toilet seat. The flat paper material may further include a front flap, a first side flap, and a second side flap. The front flap extends from a substantial portion of the front of the body and is sized to fold over a front end of a toilet seat. The first side flap extends from a substantial portion of the first side of the body and is sized to fold over a side of a toilet seat. The second side flap extends from a substantial portion of the second side of the body and sized to fold over a side of a toilet seat.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a toilet seat cover and, moreparticularly, to a toilet seat cover with foldable side flaps.

A toilet-seat cover or toilet sheet is a disposable piece of papershaped like the toilet seat itself that can be placed on the seat by itsuser. Its purpose is to protect the toilet's user from germs that may beresting on the seat by creating a protective barrier. Currently, whenchildren use toilets and toilet seat covers, the children's legs mayhang over and touch the front of the toilet seat. Further, youngchildren may hold onto the toilet seat for support and therefore touchthe sides of the toilet seat. Current toilet seat covers do not coverthe front and sides of the toilet seat and therefore do not fullyprotect the child from germs.

As can be seen, there is a need for an improved toilet seat cover forprotecting children from germs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a toilet seat cover comprises: asubstantially flat paper material comprising: a body comprising aperimeter having a front, a rear, a first side, and a second side, aninner rim forming an opening within the perimeter and aligning with anopening of a toilet seat; a front flap extending from a substantialportion of the front of the body and sized to fold over a front end of atoilet seat; a first side flap extending from a substantial portion ofthe first side of the body and sized to fold over a side of a toiletseat; and a second side flap extending from a substantial portion of thesecond side of the body and sized to fold over a side of a toilet seat.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method of covering atoilet seat with a toilet seat cover comprises: providing asubstantially flat paper material comprising: a body comprising aperimeter having a front, a rear, a first side, and a second side, aninner rim forming an opening within the perimeter; a front flapextending from a substantial portion of the front of the body; a firstside flap extending from a substantial portion of the first side of thebody; and a second side flap extending from a substantial portion of thesecond side of the body; placing the substantially flat paper materialonto a toilet seat so that the opening of the body aligns with anopening of the toilet seat; folding the front flap over a front of thetoilet seat; folding the first side flap over a first side of the toiletseat; and folding the second side flap over the second side of thetoilet seat.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdrawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top view of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective top view of an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a bottom perspective view of an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the toilet seat cover prior to beingplaced on an exemplary toilet seat; and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the toilet seat cover of FIG. 5 coveringthe exemplary toilet seat.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplatedmodes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. Thedescription is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merelyfor the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention,since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.

The present invention includes a sanitized, disposable toilet seat coverand cleaner. The toilet seat cover may be made in a variety of sizes toaccommodate different sized toilet seats, Kevlar helmets, kid's toiletseats, hospital portable toilets and the like. The present invention maybe made of any biodegradable materials and papers. The present inventionmay be made in bulk and include a plurality of catchers attached to oneanother and removable from one another. The present invention includes abarrier to protect the toilet user from germs on a toilet seat andfurther providing protection on the sides of the seat. As mentionedabove, children may place their hands on the seat to balance themselveson the toilet and the legs of the children may rest on the front of theseat. The present invention includes a plurality of flaps extending fromthe toilet seat cover, thereby covering the sides of the toilet seat andfurther protecting the children from germs.

The present invention may further include a debris catcher made of aflushable Polyvinyl Alcohol or SATM D6954 rated pouch with a funnelshape to guide excrement to the bottom of the debris catcher and weighdown the cover, ensuring its disposal when flushed. Therefore, thepresent invention prevents users from touching the seat cover after ithas been used. The debris catcher may include a V-cone shape or upsidedown hat shape with an inverted liner approximately 10 inches deep. Thedebris catcher extends into the toilet bowl and covers the inner wallsof the toilet. Since the inner walls of the toilet are covered, thepresent invention may keep the toilet clean from residual excrement anddebris. A bladder tube may extend from the bottom of the debris catcher,preventing the debris catcher from overflowing.

Referring to FIGS. 1 through 6, the present invention includes a toiletseat cover. The toilet seat cover is a substantially flat paper material10. The flat paper material 10 includes a body 22 having a perimeterwith a front, a rear, a first side, and a second side. The body 22 mayinclude an inner rim 30 forming an opening within the perimeter andaligning with an opening of a toilet seat 12. The flat paper material 10may further include a front flap 18, a first side flap 14, and a secondside flap 16. The front flap 18 extends from a substantial portion ofthe front of the body 22 and is sized to fold over a front end of atoilet seat 12. The first side flap 14 extends from a substantialportion of the first side of the body 22 and is sized to fold over aside of a toilet seat 12. The second side flap 16 extends from asubstantial portion of the second side of the body 22 and sized to foldover a side of a toilet seat 12. In certain embodiments, the presentinvention may include a rear flap 20 extending from the rear of the body22.

In certain embodiments, the flaps 14, 16, 18 of the toilet seat covermay only attach to the body 22 to easily fold relative to one another.In such embodiments, a first corner is formed at intersecting edges ofthe front flap 18 and the first side flap 14 and a second corner isformed at intersecting edges of the front flap 18 and the second sideflap 16. The present invention may further include cutout portions atthe first and second corners, so that the flaps 14, 16, 18 may easilyfold over the entire edge of the toilet seat 12.

The present invention may further include a debris receptacle 24 forreceiving excrement 26 of the user. The debris receptacle 24 is attachedto the inner rim 30 of the body 22 and extends downwards from thesubstantially flat paper material 10. The debris receptacle 24 mayprotect the inside of the toilet from becoming dirty due to diarrhea orvomit. In certain embodiments, the debris receptacle 24 may be removablefrom the flat paper material 10. In such embodiments, the debrisreceptacle 24 may attach to the body 22 by a plurality of perforations.The debris receptacle 24 may be conical in shape to guide the excrement26 down to the substantially flat bottom. In certain embodiments, thepresent invention may include a bladder tube 28. The bladder tube 28 mayinclude a first end and a second end. The first end is attached to thesubstantially flat bottom and forms a first opening and the second endis outside of the receptacle and forms a second opening. The bladdertube 28 may drain the excrement 26 into the toilet.

A method of covering a toilet seat 12 with a toilet seat cover mayinclude the following. The substantially flat paper material 10 with thedebris catcher 26 mentioned above is provided. The substantially flatpaper material 10 is placed over a toilet seat 12 so that the inner rim30 aligns with the toilet seat opening and the debris catcher is insideof the toilet bowl. The front flap 18 is folded to cover the front ofthe toilet seat 12. The first side flap 14 is folded to cover the firstside of the toilet seat 12. The second side flap 14 is folded to coverthe second side of the toilet seat 12. A user, such as a child, may siton the substantially flat paper material 10 and hold onto the sides ofthe toilet seat 12 without touching the toilet seat 12. Further, thechild's legs may hang over the front of the toilet seat 12 withouttouching the toilet seat 12. A user who is sick may use the presentinvention, and diarrhea and vomit is contained within the debris catcher26.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates toexemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A toilet seat cover comprising: a substantiallyflat paper material comprising: a body comprising a perimeter having afront, a rear, a first side, and a second side, an inner rim forming anopening within the perimeter and aligning with an opening of a toiletseat; a front flap extending from a substantial portion of the front ofthe body and sized to fold over a front end of a toilet seat; a firstside flap extending from a substantial portion of the first side of thebody and sized to fold over a side of a toilet seat; and a second sideflap extending from a substantial portion of the second side of the bodyand sized to fold over a side of a toilet seat; and a debris receptacleattached to the inner rim of the body and extending downwards from thesubstantially flat paper material and comprising a bladder tubecomprising a first end and a second end, wherein the first end isattached to a bottom of the debris receptacle and forms a first openingand the second end is outside of the receptacle and forms a secondopening, wherein the debris receptacle is formed of a flushablebiodegradable material.
 2. The toilet seat cover of claim 1, wherein afirst corner is formed at intersecting edges of the front flap and thefirst side flap and a second corner is formed at intersecting edges ofthe front flap and the second side flap.
 3. The toilet seat cover ofclaim 2, wherein the body comprises cutout portions at the first cornerand the second corner.
 4. The toilet seat cover of claim 1, furthercomprising a rear flap extending from the rear of the body. 5.(canceled)
 6. The toilet seat cover of claim 1, wherein the debrisreceptacle is attached to the inner rim by a plurality of perforations.7. The toilet seat cover of claim 1, wherein the debris receptacle isconical in shape and comprises a substantially flat bottom. 8.(canceled)
 9. A method of covering a toilet seat with a toilet seatcover comprising: providing the toilet seat cover comprising: a bodycomprising a perimeter having a front, a rear, a first side, and asecond side, an inner rim forming an opening within the perimeter; afront flap extending from a substantial portion of the front of thebody; a first side flap extending from a substantial portion of thefirst side of the body; a second side flap extending from a substantialportion of the second side of the body; and a debris receptacle attachedto the inner rim of the body and extending downwards from thesubstantially flat paper material and comprising a bladder tubecomprising a first end and a second end, wherein the first end isattached to a bottom of the debris receptacle and forms a first openingand the second end is outside of the receptacle and forms a secondopening, wherein the debris receptacle is formed of a flushablebiodegradable material; placing the substantially flat paper materialonto a toilet seat so that the opening of the body aligns with anopening of the toilet seat; folding the front flap over a front of thetoilet seat; folding the first side flap over a first side of the toiletseat; and folding the second side flap over the second side of thetoilet seat.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein a first corner is formedat intersecting edges of the front flat and the first side flap and asecond corner is formed at intersecting edges of the front flap and thesecond side flap.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the body comprisescutout portions at the first corner and the second corner.
 12. Themethod of claim 9, further comprising a rear flap extending from therear of the body.
 13. (canceled)
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein thedebris receptacle is attached to the inner rim by a plurality ofperforations.
 15. The method of claim 9, wherein the debris receptacleis conical in shape and comprises a substantially flat bottom. 16.(canceled)
 17. The toilet seat cover of claim 1, wherein the flushablebiodegradable material is polyvinyl alcohol.
 18. The method of claim 9,wherein the flushable biodegradable material is polyvinyl alcohol.